Meadowfoam oil from the seed of Limnanthes alba is known to have a number of uses. As it is a particularly stable oil it is often used as a base compound, or as an additive to oils and lotions. It has been used, for example, in soaps, massage oils, aromatherapy oils, and cosmetics. Generally, it is regarded as having 98% fatty acids and a superior stability over base oils and its use to date has been for these properties.
Similar materials such as brassicas and crambe seeds also have similar uses and properties.
Recent uses of the oil have extended to cooling oils, for food production and as a lubricant.
WO 01/24617 discloses use of a mutant form of meadowfoam plant, containing low erucic acid, which is particularly useful for cooking food production and as a lubricant.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,136,330 and WO 98/05294 disclose the use of this oil as an enhancing component for an aqueous liquid composition for skin treatment.
In WO 00/25739 meadowfoam oil or its derivatives were disclosed for use in increasing the deposition of vitamins and their precursors on the skin.
Not recognised by the prior art is the fact that meadowfoam oil (as well as the oil extracted from brassicas seeds and crambe seeds) contains glucosinolate compounds (GSL) and its hydrolysis derivative compounds, thiocyanate (TCL) and isothiocyanate (ITCL). The majority of patents relating to GSL, TCL and ITCL derive these compounds from Cruciferae species for use in anti-microbial preservative applications. In fact, most patents that discuss GSL, TCL and/or ITCL treat such compounds as a problem as ingestion appears to result in illness. This is of particular concern for crops used for stock feed.
Skin Conditions
Many oils, and/or essential oils, used either as oils, creams or lotions have been used to treat various skin complaints ranging from psoriasis, eczema, and generally rough skin. The action of the oil is to act as a moisturiser by acting as a barrier to prevent water loss from the skin. While moisturising the skin is important for most skin complaints, the oils seldom treat the underlying cause of the skin condition. They also do not necessarily stop the symptoms of such conditions such as itching.
The range of possible skin conditions which are treatable with varying degrees of efficacy by current topical applications or ingested drugs can include: eczema, facial eczema, dermatitis, external ulcers, welts, rashes, insect bites, allergic reactions and other irritations, burns, wounds, psoriasis, acneiform eruptions, dryness, dry skin, irritation, skin atrophy, secondary infections and the like.
Such conditions are treatable by a huge range of drugs from simple oils/fats/waxes through to steroids and cortisone derivatives, etc. Frequently such products will address the symptoms but not the underlying causes of the problem and thus the problem recurs.
Some of the powerful pharmaceutical drugs can have extreme side effects, which in themselves need further treatment.
However, some of the conditions are ones in which only the symptoms can be treated, but not the underlying cause.
Psoriasis in particular, is a very difficult condition to treat and various methods are currently in use including tar product creams, cortisone creams and UV treatment. These methods have numerous drawbacks such as; tar products are highly coloured, very messy, and have an unpleasant odour; cortisone creams are hard on the skin and have all the drawbacks of steroids; UV treatment is time consuming and must carefully be monitored to avoid skin cancers.
One patent that most closely describes topical agents using TCL only is U.S. Pat. No. 6,346,258. This patent describes topical agents containing thiocyanate ions and urea for enhancing the skins defense against chemical and physical irritations. The aim of the combination of thiocyanate ions and urea is to provide an improved effective agent for the prophylaxis of skin lesions for skin protections. The patent does not address psoriasis treatments in particular, there is a need for extra ingredients (urea); and further, the patent specifically excludes the use of organic TCL compounds, making the product a non-natural type remedy.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a processed oil and by-product that addresses all of the above problems.
All references, including any patents or patent applications cited in this specification are hereby incorporated by reference. No admission is made that any reference constitutes prior art. The discussion of the references states what their authors assert, and the applicants reserve the right to challenge the accuracy and pertinency of the cited documents. It will be clearly understood that, although a number of prior art publications are referred to herein, this reference does not constitute an admission that any of these documents form part of the common general knowledge in the art, in New Zealand or in any other country.
It is acknowledged that the term ‘comprise’ may, under varying jurisdictions, be attributed with either an exclusive or an inclusive meaning. For the purpose of this specification, and unless otherwise noted, the term ‘comprise’ shall have an inclusive meaning—i.e. that it will be taken to mean an inclusion of not only the listed components it directly references, but also other non-specified components or elements. This rationale will also be used when the term ‘comprised’ or ‘comprising’ is used in relation to one or more steps in a method or process.
It is an object of the present invention to address the foregoing problems or at least to provide the public with a useful choice.
Further aspects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent from the ensuing description which is given by way of example only.